Sunday, 6 November 2016

Zanu-PF says it will not repeat the mistake made in the Norton by-election recently, where the party’s candidate Cde Ronald Chindedza, lost to independent candidate Mr Temba Mliswa.

In this regard, the party has launched a “hurricane” campaign in Chimanimani West ahead of the November 26 by-election with senior party heavyweights in Manicaland descending on the constituency last weekend to drum up support for the party’s candidate Cde Nokuthula Matsikenyere.Cde Matsikenyere will battle it out with Mr Peter Gudyanga (Renewal Democrats of Zimbabwe), Mr Edmore Mtetwa (Independent) and Mr Pesanai Musakaruka (National Constitutional Assembly.)On Saturday, Politburo and Central Committee members from Manicaland addressed rallies in all the party’s 12 political districts as a way for drumming up support for Cde Matsikenyere.

Some of those who were in Chimanimani over the weekend include Politburo members Cdes Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri and Chris Mushohwe among other Politburo and Central Committee members.Over and above that, life changing projects have also been initiated in the constituency ahead of the elections.

Some of the projects include revival of an irrigation scheme in Nyanyadzi, bee and quail birds keeping and borehole drilling among others.

On Wednesday, the party had invited Labour and Social Welfare Minister Prisca Mupfumira to address the issue of food distribution in the constituency.

Speaking to The Herald after a rally at Nyanyadzi Primary School on Saturday, Cde Matsikenyere said Zanu-PF was ready for the elections and the Norton blunder would not be repeated again.Cde Matsikenyere said: “People voted for a candidate they wanted in Norton but that mistake is not going to be repeated.

Here in Chimanimani West I can safely tell you that we have already won the constituency but what we want is to surpass the number of votes got by the previous Member of Parliament (Mr Munacho Mutezo).

“As you can see, things are happening here. Several projects are being implemented to benefit the local people and that is the zanu-pf way of doing things.

“This constituency will never be the same again. In every ward today we are having a rally being addressed by a senior member of the party from Manicaland.

Victory is certain but what we want is to surpass the 9 000 votes garnered by (Mr) Mutezo in the last election and we are targeting 15 000 votes. We are not leaving any stone unturned in this endeavour.”zanu-pf Politburo member Cde (Oppah) Muchinguri, called for unity among zanu-pf members in Chimanimani West ahead of the by-elections.

She said the Zimbabwe National Water Authority had suspended the $57 000 owed by the residents of Nyanyadzi in water bills as a way of giving farmers a breathing space.

Cde Muchinguri said the country was facing economic challenges but people should not despair because Zimbabwe was endowed with vast natural resources and Government was doing everything in its capacity to normalise the situation.

“We have diamonds in this area and I was briefed that your children are not being employed by diamond companies,” she said.

“I can assure you that I am going to take that to the President and things are not going to be the same again. We want to see local youths being employed in the diamond industry here.”Cde Muchinguri said Chimanimani was a zanu-pf territory adding that people from that area participated in the war of liberation in a big way.

Said Cde Muchinguri: “Be united in this area. Development follows unity and zanu-pf we are doing everything to ensure that you live a better life in Chimanimani.”

Cde Muchinguri urged people here to engage in various projects saying Government was in supportive of such initiatives as they feed into the country’s economic blueprint Zim-Asset. Herald